The First Star to the Left
by swagbanana
Summary: Everyone knows that the Second Star to the Right leads to the marvelous land of Neverland. However, things have become a bit disjointed between Peter and his Lost Boys; they've lost their connection to the wonder of their home. When an unexpected visitor starts trespassing into Neverland, Peter and the Lost Boys realize that their world is much bigger than they thought it was.


Leo was bored. The boys were always bored when Peter was away. Peter was usually gone for days at a time, with the time difference and all.

Leo kicked his feet absent-mindedly against the dirt ledge on which he was lying. He breathed out, the soft twilight rays resting on his eyelids. He could hear the jungle around him; bugs buzzed in and out of the branches, birds twittered from their nests. It was very peaceful. But, being the young 11-year old boy he was, the peace was dreadfully boring. He wanted to play.

Something tickled his nose. He almost swiped it away, but a small tinkling noise alerted him enough to open his eyes.

It was Tinkerbell.

"Oh, hello there," Leo said. "Is Peter back yet?"

Tinkerbell shook her head. Peter must have sent her home alone.

"Oh," Leo sighed.

Peter had been spending more and more time away from Neverland. He never brought back anyone anymore. Not after Jane. And he never needed Tink for fairy dust. Peter had used it so much for so long that he didn't seem to need it anymore. The effects never faded away. Not for him.

"Soo… what's up?" Leo asked Tinkerbell.

Tinkerbell placed her hands in front of her face and then peeked out behind them.

"Hide and Seek? Sure! It beats just sitting here." Leo stood excitedly. Tinkerbell flew around him releasing a blanket of shimmering dust that enveloped Leo.

Almost unconsciously Leo searched his memories for the one he always used to fly. It was before he had joined Peter's crew of lost boys. He was around 7 or 8 years old. His mother was there and she was holding his hands. They were having a picnic in the back yard and she wore a yellow sundress. Leo remembered her smell, like daisies.

As Leo smiled his body began to feel weightless and he rose several feet into the air. He smiled at Tinkerbell and began to count.

"30, 29, 28, 27…"

Leo and Tinkerbell played for several hours. There was no end to the fun. The island provided endless hiding places and finding each other was never to hard because of the dust trails they each left behind for each other.

"Gotcha!" Leo shouted as he popped up next to the top of the totem pole. Tinkerbell jumped, but then laughed her bell-like laugh. The friendly Indians grinned up at them to see the two having such a fun time.

"Alright, my turn!" Leo turned away to begin his hiding, but Tinkerbell stopped him. She pointed at the sky. The sun was barely above the horizon and its light would soon be gone.

"Aw, come on! One more time! Please," Leo begged.

Tinkerbell looked at his pleading face, unsure of what to say. Eventually she nodded and turned away closing her eyes. Little spurts of tinkling came from her as she began to count.

Leo was off like a rocket. He raced away from the Indian campground towards the jungle and weaved back and forth through the tree branches. He couldn't hide at the mermaid's lagoon, he'd already used that. Dead man's tree and the fairy grove were both used as well. But there was still one place neither Leo, nor Tink had hidden yet. Skull Island.

The lost boys normally stayed away from the island because Captain Hook docked there often and could easily send his crew after the boys if he saw them.

Leo wouldn't actually go on the island, too risky. But the mainland that jutted out towards the island had several large, jagged rocks that Leo could hide behind without being seen. He turned left and set off towards the island.

It was even darker when he arrived and the rocks' shadows were long and menacing. He felt uneasy and his flight responded, dropping him several feet. He had to cling to his happy thought to stay airborne. He set down lightly and trudged through the sand towards one of the largest rocks and stood behind it, facing the ocean, so as not to be seen by a searching fairy.

The sun sank past the horizon, leaving a bloody glow on Leo and the rocks. He began to feel uneasy and began thinking of different hiding places that Tink might find faster. After all, he couldn't just give himself up since he had begged for one more go of hide-and-seek. As he was thinking, a small hum took up in his rock. He didn't notice at first because it was very slight, until it made his nose and the soles of his feet itch intensely. He snapped out of his thoughts and turned his attention to the curiously vibrating rock that was hiding him.

Giving up his position for the sake of curiosity, he walked out from behind the large stone and into the middle of the ring. Each stone that the ring comprised of was humming violently and began wiggling back and forth in its spot. The movement became so intense that Leo became scared of the growing chaos and ran from the circle, taking refuge behind several bushes that stood mere feet from the stones.

As the vibrations rose, so did the stones. Slowly they left their slots shaking dirt to the ground as they went. They rose into the air several feet before coming to a complete stop above where Leo's hair might have brushed them, had he stood under them. The humming then faded rather quickly, until there was an eerie silence that chilled Leo's blood. The rocks hung in the air without as much as the whooshing of wind to heed their heightened presence. Then without warning they slammed together at the center of the circle before pulling apart just as quickly. There was a flash of blue light. And with a slight delay, the rocks settled back into their holes in the ground as if nothing had ever happened.

Leo's mouth hung open and his body trembled rigorously. He didn't notice the cold as much as he noticed a figure that had appeared in the middle of the circle.


End file.
